New Megan Nash album gets approval from Sask. music fans

Alternative/roots singer-songwriter Megan Nash took a different direction with her new album “Seeker” and music fans approved – their votes took the album to the top spot in SaskMusic’s poll for the best Saskatchewan albums of 2017.

Nash collaborated with the ambient/alt rock group Bears in Hazenmore during the creation of the 12-track album, which was released in September 2017.“We put a lot of ourselves into it, a lot of our heart and souls into this record,” she said. “So for it to get some recognition from people who listen to it is very helpful when you’re making an album for people to listen to. The fact that people listen to it and also that some people liked it enough to vote for it is very humbling and I’m very honoured to receive that kind of recognition.”SaskMusic organized the 2017 best Saskatchewan albums poll as a project to celebrate the music being created in the province. An industry jury created a long list of 42 albums and the top 10 albums were selected during an online public vote from Dec. 9-18.Her latest album is a stark contrast to the minimalism of her 2015 album “Song Harvest Volume One” that was simply a blend of her voice and guitar. On “Seeker” her powerful voice combines with the full sound of a five-piece band. Bears in Hazenmore is now based in Regina, but all the band members are from Swift Current.Her collaboration with the band started at a music camp in Swift Current, where they had their first show together at the Lyric Theatre.“It was after our first show together at the Lyric Theatre where we thought maybe we should do this again,” she recalled. “Within a year of that show at the Lyric Theatre we already recorded a full album and we’ve done tours together. So it was really a bit of a whirlwind with those guys and it’s been pretty cool to see what happened in a short amount of time.”She was on a solo tour in Europe during September when the new album was released, and in October she did an album release tour with the band in eastern Canada that took them from Toronto to Halifax and back to Ontario.“The tours have been really fun,” she said. “I’ve been doing some solos and some with the band. So it’s been cool to get on the road and to have a new album.”She is excited about her upcoming performance with the band at the Mae Wilson Theatre in Moose Jaw on Feb. 3, which will also feature Regina singer-songwriter Danny Oliver as the opening act. She is hoping to also see music fans from southwest Saskatchewan at this performance.“I haven’t done a whole lot of touring in western Canada with the new album,” she said. “So I’m really looking forward to our upcoming show in Moose Jaw at the Mae Wilson Theatre. We’ll have the full band out for that. I know it’s a bit of a drive from Swift, but it will be a good show.”Nash still continues to do solo shows, but she now has the option to also provide a different musical experience to audiences when she performs with the band.“I feel people will probably always have one that they prefer over the other,” she said. “I’m just happy right now that I’m able to offer both. … It’s nice to be versatile and having a band now really allows me to do that. I’ve even done some duo tours with Darnell Stewart, who plays guitar with the Bears and with me. So just to have options like that is really nice.”She grew up on a farm at Mortlach, but now lives in the Moose Jaw area. She feels those years on the farm helped to prepare her for the unique lifestyle of a musician.“I watched my dad be a small organic farmer for a number of years, and I think it’s a lot like that where your work is your lifestyle,” she said about being an independent musician. “It is really a unique lifestyle that I’m lucky to be able to have, and I have a lot of support from the community, which is great.”She is happy to be able to create music in Saskatchewan, and she feels the province has a significant influence on her work as a singer-songwriter. She made a conscious decision to stay in the province because it is important for her to be here.“I do feel that there’s a vulnerability and an openness to the land that I’m trying to capture within lines of songs,” she said. “It’s a good music community too, and that’s why it was so humbling and really kind of folks to vote for the album for the Best of Saskatchewan through SaskMusic, because it’s just nice to get a pat on the back from the community in which you live and work.”